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Otto Warmbier, 22, UV student, released from North Korea, June 2017, Deceased

WYOMING, Ohio (AP) - The father of an American college student released by North Korea and now hospitalized in a coma says his son was "brutalized" by his captors.

Fred Warmbier told Fox News' Tucker Carlson on Wednesday from his Ohio home that his son, Otto, "is not in great shape right now."
"Otto has been terrorized and brutalized for 18 months by a pariah regime in North Korea," the father said in an interview scheduled to air Thursday night.

The 22-year-old University of Virginia student was medically evacuated from North Korea and flown to Cincinnati late Tuesday. He was then taken by ambulance to a hospital.
Fred Warmbier said he does not know exactly what happened to his son during his detention. He and his wife, Cindy, planned a Thursday news conference.

The public appearance will be at Wyoming High School, one of Ohio's top-rated schools. Warmbier graduated from there in 2013 as class salutatorian and had played soccer.

Residents of the northern Cincinnati suburb tied blue-and-white ribbons, the school colors, to trees near the family home. Joy at his release was mixed with concern after his parents said they were told he had been in the coma for over a year.

Otto Warmbier, American released from North Korea, has 'severe neurological injury'

Family scoffs at North Korea's explanation his condition resulted from botulism, sleeping pill

The Associated Press Posted: Jun 15, 2017

The American college student who was released by North Korea in a coma suffered a "severe neurological injury," according to a spokesperson for an Ohio hospital.

Otto Warmbier is in stable condition after arriving at the hospital two days ago, Kelly Martin of the University of Cincinnati Medical Center said Thursday.
Doctors plan a news conference on campus for later Thursday.

His father, Fred Warmbier, said Thursday he does not believe North Korea's explanation that the coma is the result of botulism and a sleeping pill.

"We went for 15 months without a word from or about Otto," Mr Warmbier said of his son, who fought back tears at Thursday's press conference in Cincinnati, Ohio.

"It was only a week ago that the North Korean government now claims that he was in a coma for almost all of that time.

"Even if you believe their explanation of botulism and a sleeping pill causing the coma - and we don't - there's no excuse for a civilised nation to have kept his condition secret and to have denied him top notch medical care."

Otto Warmbier, an economics student from the University of Virginia, was arrested in January 2016 while visiting North Korea as a tourist. What is botulism?

Botulism is a type of poisoning which can cause total body paralysis, difficulty in breathing and death in some cases.
It's caused by the clostridium botulinum bacteria, but the symptoms of botulism are not from the bacteria themselves.
Instead, the microscopic organisms produce a powerful toxin which attacks the nervous system and causes paralysis.

In honour of his son, Fred Warmbier wore the same jacket Otto was wearing when he was paraded before media to tearfully confess to attempting to take the sign as a "trophy" for a US church.

Medical personnel were seen transferring a person believed to be Mr Warmbier to an ambulance at an airport in Cincinnati on Tuesday night

Thanks for starting his own thread for Otto, dotr. Should we ask for the posts on David's thread to be moved or copied here? I always hate to bug the mods so I always hesitate.

Severe neurological injury... when I Google it I get results for severe brain injury. I know nothing about this stuff. Can't figure out what his prognosis could be... I'm sure it's grim.

Reposted some of those links already and it looks like there are and will continue to be, new news concerning Otto's case forthcoming, imo.
Links about Otto, on David Sneddon's thread, will hopefully bring attention to his case too.imo.

Just saw a press conference on Fox News with the medical staff who are treating Otto. It is not good, he has "extensive loss of brain tissue". Brain tissue doesn't regenerate, so..... I didn't find an updated link, hopefully there will be one available soon.

Just saw a press conference on Fox News with the medical staff who are treating Otto. It is not good, he has "extensive loss of brain tissue". Brain tissue doesn't regenerate, so..... I didn't find an updated link, hopefully there will be one available soon.

Just saw a press conference on Fox News with the medical staff who are treating Otto. It is not good, he has "extensive loss of brain tissue". Brain tissue doesn't regenerate, so..... I didn't find an updated link, hopefully there will be one available soon.

Just saw a press conference on Fox News with the medical staff who are treating Otto. It is not good, he has "extensive loss of brain tissue". Brain tissue doesn't regenerate, so..... I didn't find an updated link, hopefully there will be one available soon.

I just read that while ago. It does sound like a very glum prognosis, because it's always been thought that brain tissue cannot regenerate. I thought I'd read recently, though, studies where brain tissue was discovered to regenerate. I found this:

Summary:
Researchers developed a nanogel that enables the growth of new neurons. Working with animal models, researchers were able to cross the electroencephalic barrier, introduce a nanogel and achieve the growth of neurons within the gel, which shows that it is possible to promote regeneration of brain tissue.